>> this is "bbc world news." funding of this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to know your business, offering

specialized solutions and capital to help you meet your growth objectives. solutions for small businesses and major corporations. >> this is "bbc world news ing and fromrte washington. >> just a few blocks away, children were singing school songs, classes were going on. this neighborhood is divided. >> french authorities increase

security at nearly two dozen embassies after a magazine publishes cartoons of the prophet muhammed. an extreme fault that lands i adventure in serious trouble. thanks to the internet, the search party has something to celebrate. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. rebels said they took control of a border crossing to turkey today, but in damascus opposition forces are in retreat. the situation for civilians is dire and the report has been issued on the love boat accusing the government forces of deliberately attacking bread lines and hospitals.

>> back to school in damascus, singing the national anthem saluting the army that keeps them safe. this is not just a song. this central neighborhood is now heavily protected. the world of these children is not just for of all around winnie the pooh. are you happy to be back as school, the teacher asks. yes, they respond. are you afraid of anything, she asks. no. do you feel safe at home, there is allowed -- the loud of a shell. what about the loud sound? oh, he says it is far away.

actually, this is not that far. this is a government-supported the neighborhood. just a few blocks away, clashes are going on. this neighborhood is divided. just like syria. >> it is harder to move around now, there are so many checkpoints. the soldiers seemed relaxed today, even walk to me. -- even welcoming. this is as far as they will let us go. even driving around this neighborhood with our government minder, the destruction is visible. houses were reduced to rubble during the weeks of the soul to put down the opposition. the damages were assessed inside. they were too afraid to speak on camera.

-- the damages were worse inside. damascus is a city divided. all day today there has been government shelling in some areas, fighting in others. many schools have not even opened. here, inside these walls, the still chant slogans of the ruling party. >> for more on the old order's fight for survival, i am joined by a senior fellow for the middle east institute. you give us a sense of what people might think might push aside out of power. >> the main thing, giving the external intervention is not going to happen, this is greater weapons for the opposition.

this is being debated across the west. this is turning into a proxy battle that i think no one knows with the outcome will be. >> what about turkey itself? if people at the white house are looking at turkey as a country that might take the lead, whether it is in creating safe havens, no-fly zones. >> turkey says that the u.s. is holding them back from exploring those options. there is a lot of double talk going on that is hard to understand. we will have to wait and see what the response of the white house's. everyone is trying to decide whether the policy will change or not. >> as some point governments will say this crisis has gone on for so long, so many people have been killed, that our policy of

not intervening is under pressure. >> exactly, when you have 200 people a day killed it, very little intervention, a lack of basic human decency. . they do not understand why the assistance is not coming. this does not bode well for syria. >> the arguments for not intervening is because there's no coherent opposition. in your conversations comment did you get the sense that that is changing? >> yes, there is more structured to be rebel army. there are more military councils. there is more structure but not the kind of regular force.

iran has arrived and they are supporting the creation of a regular forces for the regime. they have no problem with backing a regular forces but the west does. that will be an issue, how does this affect the allies response? >> is anything in your conversations with people in washington that after november 6th, the might be a policy of intervention? >> i don't think that obama would like to lead on this. let others try to step up to lead, they want to put restrictions into place and that frustrates allies. especially turkey, saudi arabia, qatar as well. >> thank you for coming. france says it will temporarily close its indices and schools

and in 20 countries after a french magazine published satirical pictures of the prophet mohammad. the last time it published similar cartoons, the french offices of the magazine were firebombed. >> the right police were at the offices this morning. not the only precaution the french authorities were taking. the cartoon satirize the muslim reaction to an american movie. the next pri will be friday, the moslem day of prayer. -- the next printing will be friday. when we attacked the catholic hard right, nobody talked about it. but we're not allowed to make fun of muslim hotliners.

it is the new rule, but we will not obey it. >> they printed a similar series of cartoons earlier and there offices were firebombed. its style is widely recognized. it is often crude, cruel, consistently provocative. this would be considered offensive even by non muslims. the timing has been condemned. the white house questioned the judgment of the editor. in the past week, there been violent demonstrations outside of american embassies. in libya, the ambassador was killed. in 20 countries, they have stepped up security. in cairo, the embassy was surrounded by police. schools have been protected.

want these people to think that we're infringing their right to free expression. the government has urged the muslim community to register their anger to the courts. one group has registered a complaint. the head of the muslim council called for calm. >> we expressed to him the fury at these provocations but we talk about our peaceful intentions. >> france has the biggest muslim community in europe. the tensions are high. after protests last week, the government has refused a request for a bigger demonstration on saturday. the foreign minister says it is about france's problem. >> tensions have not eased across the middle east a week after the american ambassador to libya was killed in benghazi.

and all to conservative muslim group denied any involvement in the assault but said it rejected what it's all as the imposition of democracy in libya. -- what it saw as the imposition of democracy in libya. >> libya celebrating martyrs' day with guns. there are reminders everywhere of the sacrifices these people made to win their freedom. there are some here who refused to lay down their weapons. radical islamist groups say the fight for the villa is not over. they completely reject a western-style solution. >> we don't believe in the democratic system, even those countries pretend the are ruled

by democracy, they know it is a mistake. we want to tell the whole world that the project of democracy is not for us and it does not suit islam. >> one group denies that they were responsible for the death of the american ambassador. they support the rights of muslims to protest against blasphemy. about 50 people were arrested in connection. it will not say who they are what the evidence is. a day confess that many of the perpetrators might have already left libya. for much of this is just for show and the new authorities have been criticized for failing to get on top of a worsening security situation. stand against these

groups and we will be successful. we believe the majority is against this. >> all of this instability has a crippling impact of benghazi's ambition to rebuild. this town was abandoned last year by its chinese developers. they and other foreign investors have yet to return. most libyans support their democratic projects and this city has a largely positive feel. a handful of radical militants to still spoil everything. >> of the complications of post-gaddafi of libya. the president of georgia has said the country's entire prison staff will be suspended after a video merged showing inmates being severely abused. prisoners are shown being badly beaten, one is sexually

assaulted. relatives of the inmates attempted to storm the facilities where the abuse allegedly happened. an inquiry in the u.s. has uncovered serious management failures in a sting operation that would let gunrunners smuggle weapons to mexico. agents in the operation known as operation fast and furious lost the weapons. the attorney general was cleared of any wrongdoing. there was a record summer melting. satellite images show the icecap melted back of the timber the 16th, the minimum for the year and the smallest extent on record. the tension between japan and china over a chain of disputed islands in the east china sea has erupted into a diplomatic fight. the presumed next leader of

china has warned japan to rein in their behavior. he made the comments during a meeting with leon panetta. he told the bbc it would be important for the countries to resolve the dispute. >> uninhabited and isolated, they could spark war in asia. offer there is some oil and gas at here, but it is national pride at stake. already, ships are fighting at sea, japan and china duelling. chinese nationalists tried to plant their fight last month. japan says that they have bought the islands. they have urged restraint. there has been a fury in china, people here are taught to remember the japanese wartime atrocities and encouraged to believe that type of's power is rising. this is a combustible mix.

-- they are occurs to to believe that japan's power is rising. there is aggressive nationalism in china and also attention with its neighbors. that means with a small incident, it could set off a dangerous dynamic. it could even soft in america which has a defense treaty obliging it to help japan in any conflict. >> these kinds of incidents could drag the u.s. into it in one capacity or another. it cannot be allowed to become the kind of dynamite or explosive territorial disputes that could result in a larger conflict. >> for leon panetta, he has been here urging cool heads. the problem is that nobody would

like to look weak. certainly not the man expected to take over as the next chinese leader. he cannot afford to be soft on japan. china has put an end to the street protests, but they have dispatched more boats to the island. exactly the sort of move that gives american military leaders sleepless nights. >> watching the south china seas very carefully. you are watching "bbc world news america," killing super weeds. we tell you how farmers are trying to save their crops from ever-stronger weeds. aung san suu kyi who is visiting the u.s. has been presented with the country's highest civilian honor, four years after she was awarded it a while under house arrest. she described it as one of the

most movie does for life. >> committed the patriotic splendor of the u.s. capitol, something all too rare in washington, unity and joy. aung san suu kyi collected them medal awarded four years ago when george bush was president and she was under house arrest. >> i thank you, the people of america, and you, the representatives, for keeping us in your hearts and minds during the dark years when freedom and justice seemed beyond our reach. >> the ceremony was had been turned down after respect for the reformist government in burma to which aung san suu kyi paid a generous to beat. her american host new they were in the president of an icon. >> when her isolated had ended,

we met her in person. we found not a symbol, but a woman. a woman of tremendous you are, honesty, grace. >> it is almost too delicious to believe, my friend, that you are here in the rotunda of our great capital, the centerpiece of our democracy, as an elected member of your apartment. >> they looked a emotional, she a little bit overwhelmed by comparisons to gandhi, king, mandela >> for every action there is a reaction and it is true in the world pharmaceuticals as well. an increase in genetically-

modified crops in the u.s. has led to a rise in so-called super weeds. these plants are resistant to many herbicide which forces farmers to use up to 20 times the recommended dose of weed killer. >> the rise of resisted weeds on this farm near humboldt, nebraska has threatened the livelihood and family. last year, he spent $7.5000 on chemical sprays that failed to protect his crops. the pungent palling from these weeds seriously affected his 8- year-old daughter's asthma. >> it makes her hard for her to brief. -- breathe. >> one of the problems is giant ragweed. you can see these plants tower over my head. scientists have been tried to

kill these weeds using extra doses of chemical spray. they were able to survive 24 times the dose. its scientists cannot kill them with chemicals, it would take over this entire corn field. the resistance has been caused by the huge success of gm in the u.s. which has encouraged farmers to only use one chemical. now, they believe the solution lies in adding another herbicide that until now was to destructive to crops. >> this time, it shows the gradual killing of the week after spraying with the weed killer. >> this is best known for being part of the mix that constituted agent orange. some scientists believe it offers farmers a new method in

the fight against weeds. it should not be seen as a silver bullet. >> essentially, we will develop resistance. >> as a result, some researchers are developing a way of beating the creeping inventors pushed to. >> they're looking for ways to suppress the weeds naturally. the future might depend on them.

>> he is an extreme sports in doocy as with a taste for danger. the british in the venture got more than he bargained for when he had to be rescued from a freeze engorged days after crashing while speed fine. his friends raised more than $22,000 and he was found with little more than a broken ankle. >> he was pictured after being rescued in the swiss alps. he had been trapped for almost 70 hours. he was taking part in an extreme sport. this shows what it can involve. he was fine with two friends from a launch site but he did not reach the agreed landing site forced to come down near the bottom of a waterfall. the search teams were sent to find him.

>> we're thankful to everyone. without the contribution, we would not have found him. >> it has been anxious at his place of work. the staff and customers have been waiting for news. holly has known and worked for him for three years. she is relief that he has been found safe and well. >> we care about him a lot. it is ok now, because he is fine. he was essentially found after making a sign from branches. it is not thought that he suffered any serious injuries and he is in good spirits and grateful for the support he received.

>> but will he be speed find again? that brings the show to a close. you can get more on that story and any other news on our website. thank you so much for watching. i will see you back here tomorrow. >> makes sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding of this presentation was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, newman's own foundation, and union bank.

>> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to understand the industry you operation. working to nurture new ventures and how to provide capital for key strategic decisions. we offer expertise in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles.